Why Do Christians Get Discouraged? (Hebrews 11:6, 12:1-3)

1. The reason why people become discouraged 

(1)They are merely churchgoers, without any faith. For this reason, they face more trials and tribulations (Mt 12:43-45).

There is a reason. If you look at Matthew 12:43 to 45, the devil works seven times as hard in those people.

If these people are not centered on Christ, and they go back and forth from the church, it means that they are still trying to live some sort of righteous or clean life.They keep going back and forth to church. But, if they haven’t really been changed, then the devil has no choice but to really work on them.

That is why they are in the middle of being discouraged and not going to church. 

There are many reasons, but the core is that they don’t have faith, but they have a lot of reasons. But their life is actually even more collapsed. The devil does not leave them alone, and the devil would never leave them alone. The more someone tries to live a religious and righteous life without changing this inner core that needs to be centered on Christ, The devil will work on them even more.

(2)it is because in the end, they could not experience God (Heb 11:6).

Meeting God. Ultimately, it is that they have never met the living God.  If they met God then they would change. But it means that they have never met God and they are just going back and forth to church, as if it were a temple or an idolatrous shrine.

Then they would say even more boldly that I used to volunteer and serve the church so much. And their expression of how deep their walk of faith was, was that they served the church, a lot. But ultimately, because they don’t believe they didn’t have any change.

So they collapse even more and they’ll say things like, oh don’t talk about church in front of me. They will say things like, Oh, I went to church but everyone there was lazy and I was the only one who did any work. So next, even though they’ve go to church. They’ve never experienced the gospel. You need to listen to the gospel. 

(3)What does it mean to ‘not experience God?’ (1 Co 2:10-14)

Gospel. I’m not saying that the sermons have never included the gospel but this gospel must be relayed surely inside of them, but they just came to church without knowing what this gospel is. So, these people are just going back and forth between churches with this changed exterior. For example, they might change their old religious text into the Bible. 

Then they saw that people were giving meals at church so everybody went around and got their food. There are some people who would get tested by this offering. However, they say that even if you go to an organization or club you always have to get a meal so they do it. 

Then they get mixed into the different groups at church for example the men’s group or the women’s group. And then they do these acts like they would give the representative prayer, they would write it down and say it out, but they’ve never had the gospel. And because they’ve never really heard the gospel. The only thing that they’ve listened to is legalism.

They just hear things like do this and don’t do that. But when they listen to the word. There are so many people who are doing things that they are told not to do. And if you take the gospel out, then it’s just do this, don’t do that it’s all legalism. So they hear what they’re not supposed to do, but when they go out into the field. There are Christians doing worse things than they are. So then they get tested.

Then the state of their heart is completely in the state of a non believer, and they just keep going back and forth to church.

(4)What is the state of their hearts? (Ro 3:23)

Their unbeliever state. These people are always centered on themselves. 

And because they go to church, and they don’t know what the gospel is, they always try to decide between what’s good or bad, and they look at other people and find that other people are worse.

And they give a lot of offering but other people who have been there a long time, don’t give any offering. And so they’re using all these different things to compare.

Then one day, you realize that everything that you’ve done is just causing you stress and then you leave.

What this means is that you’re just not able to properly meet God. And there are many people like that in LA. But these people have never met christ.They just go back and forth to church. One day I saw a senior deaconess out in the field and the word that she said was that the people who go to church in LA are non believers.

In other words, if they say that they have gone to church, then you can assume that they are non believersThat means that all the non believers are not just the people who didn’t go to church but all the people who go to church as well are non believers in that they have never been able to meet God.If you meet God you change. 

In other words, you taste, God taste. Even with drugs. It’s not about just doing drugs once or twice but once you have a taste for drugs you can’t escape. In other words, they have never once been able to experience the Word of God being inside of them working in them and changing them.Everything has words, there are books, but they have never experienced that the word of God is living.

Anyone can read the word there are books about it and everything.But the Word of God is living inactive and they have never experienced that.In other words, there is a spiritual blessing that God has given to us but they don’t know what it is.

God also gives us the blessings and the answers but they have never experienced to this. If there’s anyone like this inside the church they are non believers, they might go to church a lot but their insights have not changed. And if they have not changed. Then they are always within the states of the non believer of curses.

Then when they work and something happens, then they quit.We need to taste this true life.

What is true life.You think that everything is dead but there is something that is sprouting from there.You think that everything is dead but there is something that is sprouting from there.

because you have life, nothing is a problem for you before you used to think there was a problem because you were in the state of death but life is not disturbed you’re only like that because you haven’t received salvation experience. Then there is the experience of life experience is what’s important. But what follows.

Once I received salvation.was smiling for years. You know even like the smiling grandma next to me was beautiful and I wanted to go and help her.I was just by myself crazy, and I liked it so much. There was nothing that was given to me, the environment was the same. But because life had come into me. My insights were changing.

Then the direction of my life began to change.There are many people who are going to church without experiencing Christ.So everything they talk about is about problems in their lives. And it’s because they haven’t changed. Once you change. You will be changed.

If these people are not centered on Christ, and they go back and forth from the church, it means that they are still trying to live some sort of righteous or clean life. And they keep going back and forth to church. But, if they haven’t really been changed, then the devil has no choice but to really work on them. That is why they are in the middle of being discouraged and not going to church. There are many reasons. But the core is that they don’t have faith, but they have a lot of reasons. But their life is actually even more collapsed. The devil does not leave them alone, and the devil would never leave them alone.

The more someone tries to live a religious and righteous life without changing this inner core that needs to be centered on Christ, The devil will work on them even more. Number two, God meeting. Ultimately, it is that they have never met the living God. If they met God then they would change. But it means that they have never met God and they are just going back and forth to church, as if it were a temple or an idolatrous shrine. 

Then they would say even more boldly that I used to volunteer and serve the church so much. And their expression of how deep their walk of faith was, was that they served the church, a lot. But ultimately, because they don’t believe they didn’t have any change. So they collapse even more and they’ll say things like, oh don’t talk about church in front of me. They will say things like, Oh, I went to church but everyone there was lazy and I was the only one who did any work.

So next, even though they’ve go to church. They’ve never experienced the gospel. You need to listen to the gospel. Well, number three Gospel. I’m not saying that the sermons have never included the gospel but this gospel must be relayed surely inside of them, but they just came to church without knowing what this gospel is. So, these people are just going back and forth between church with this changed exterior. For example, they might change their old religious text into the Bible. Then they saw that people were giving meals at church so everybody went around and got their food. There are some people who would get tested by this offering. However, they say that even if you go to an organization or club you always have to get a meal so they do it.

Then they get mixed into the different groups at church for example the men’s group or the women’s group. And then they do these acts like they would give the representative prayer, they would write it down and say it out, but they’ve never had the gospel. And because they’ve never really heard the gospel. The only thing that they’ve listened to is legalism. They just hear things like do this and don’t do that. But when they listen to the word. There are so many people who are doing things that they are told not to do. And if you take the gospel out, then it’s just do this, don’t do that it’s all legalism. So they hear what they’re not supposed to do, but when they go out into the field. There are Christians doing worse things than they are. So then they get tested.

Then the state of their heart is completely in the state of a non believer, and they just keep going back and forth to church. Number four. Their unbeliever state. These people are always centered on themselves. And because they go to church, and they don’t know what the gospel is, they always try to decide between what’s good or bad, and they look at other people and find that other people are worse. And they give a lot of offers but other people who have been there a long time, don’t give any offers. And so they’re using all these different things to compare.

Then one day, you realize that everything that you’ve done is just causing you stress and then you leave. What this means is that you’re just not able to properly meet God. And there are many people like that in LA.

But these people have never met Christ. They just go back and forth to church. One day I saw a senior deaconess out in the field and the word that she said was that the people who go to church in LA are non believers. In other words, if they say that they have gone to church, then you can assume that they are non believers.

That means that all the non believers are not just the people who didn’t go to church but all the people who go to church as well are non believers in that they have never been able to meet God. If you meet God you change. In other words, you taste, God taste. Even with drugs. It’s not about just doing drugs once or twice but once you have a taste for drugs you can’t escape. In other words, they have never once been able to experience the Word of God being inside of them working in them and changing them. Everything has words, there are books, but they have never experienced that the word of God is living. Anyone can read the word there are books about it and everything. But the Word of God is living inactive and they have never experienced that. In other words, there is a spiritual blessing that God has given to us but they don’t know what it is. God also gives us the blessings and the answers but they have never experienced to this. If there’s anyone like this inside the church they are non believers, they might go to church a lot but their insights have not changed. And if they have not changed. Then they are always within the states of the non believer of curses. Then when they work and something happens, then they quit.

We need to taste this true life. What is true life. You think that everything is dead but there is something that is sprouting from there.After the winter you think that all the trees look like dead but

because you have life, nothing is a problem for you before you used to think there was a problem because you were in the state of death but life is not disturbed you’re only like that because you haven’t received salvation experience. Then there is the experience of life. Experience is what’s important. But what follows. Once I received salvation. I was smiling for years. You know even like the smiling grandma next to me was beautiful and I wanted to go and help her. I was just by myself crazy, and I liked it so much. There was nothing that was given to me, the environment was the same. But because life had come into me. My insights were changing. Then the direction of my life began to change. There are many people who are going to church without experiencing Christ. So everything they talk about is about problems in their lives. And it’s because they haven’t changed. Once you change. You will be changed. Or, like a person who was in North Korea and they’ve escaped. Once they experience that they will change, but they will say these non. These completely useless words because they haven’t changed yet, but once they come here, they will experience that freedom. They can wear whatever they want. And they can do their makeup however they want and they can do whatever business they would like. Even their electricity will run 24 hours. Isn’t that right, they can go to school. You only experienced that once you escaped, but if you’re in North Korea, you wouldn’t have the electricity. Even if you’re living in an apartment and if there’s no electricity, then you can’t use it, you’d have to bring in wood and light fires in your apartment. But if you live in North Korea and they haven’t experienced the outside world, then it’s just talking about useless things. Once these people have experienced the freedom now that nobody is telling them what to do, they don’t know how to live.

Now, they used to go with a life of criticizing the opposing party, but they don’t know what to do with their lives for a few years. For a few years they have no idea what to do so they can’t even leave their house. Somebody should come looking for them but nobody will come looking for them. Some kind of security guards should have come looking for them. And there should be somebody surveilling them but nobody’s surveilling them.

That is what it means to have strength, but if you don’t have strength, then you’re going to face mental problems. Why do people have mental problems even though they go to church?

(1)Acceptance (Jn 1:12)

i Three things are immediately resolved (Eph 2:1-6).

ii The things that will continue to be resolved (Gal 5:16-18, Php 1:6).

(2)The indwelling of the Holy Spirit (Ro 8:2, 1Co 3:16)

(3) Self-denial (Gal 2:20)

(4)Guidance of the Holy Spirit (Jn 14:26-27)

(5)Filling of the Holy Spirit (Ac 2:1-13)

3. If you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you will…

1. Have assurance (Ac 2:1-17).

2. Receive power from God (Ac 3:1-10).

3. Testify of Jesus (Ac 4:12).

4. No fear of trials or tribulations (Acts 4).

5. Not be envious of anything that belongs to the world (Acts 5).

Do not be envious of anything.  If you go to church does that mean you won’t have any mental problems. No, but if you have strength, then you can overcome that.  No matter what this person says to me if I have no strength that I’m just gonna hear somebody like a dog whose barking, what they say might be true but it doesn’t matter what she says.

If you know the work that you have to do and you know the place you have to go, then those kinds of words will just be like a dog barking. But because you have nothing to do, you’re always going out and fighting and you’ll say What did you say to me, and you’ll look around looking for conflicts.

It’s because you don’t know what you’re trying to do with your life. A marathon runner has to have the end goal in mind. Is he going to start a fight with somebody who yells at him from the sidelines. It’s not about whether somebody is right or wrong. It’s if you see someone yelling at you, you’ll pass by them because they’re just going to keep barking and they will collapse. You need the strength.

6. Be given a commission from God (Acts 6-8).

You need to have a mission that you need to live for your eyes will see this, if you have a mission, then your eyes, must be opened. No matter how much you have a mission, if you don’t open your eyes. You cannot receive strength. You know the difference between feeling hungry, and full right there was somebody who used to be in the military and they said that no matter how much they tried to cook the ramen. That was in the military, they would never get the same taste. You guys might never know.

A little bit of a similar comparison would be pregnancy cravings. I’ve never experienced them but I’ve heard of them. For example, in the middle of winter you might ask for strawberries, but they’re not in season.

This man who was in the military asked, and said that when he was really starving. There was someone who came and shared a bowl of noodles with him and it was so amazing, and he never could replicate that taste. Later on he asked that for the recipe and to figure out how to make it and he did but it was not the same. Why was it different because the state he was in was not the same. Back then, he wasn’t able to eat ramen. And because he was so hungry and he had that ramen imagine how delicious it was, but now he’s in a state that he has so much money he can do whatever he wants. So he’s no longer famished.

So, the adults who say, oh, during the Korean War when we ate that one meal there was so delicious. they cannot recreate that taste again. So, the adults who say, oh, during the Korean War when we ate that one meal there was so delicious. they cannot recreate that taste again. 

Right now they are so full. But back then they were so famished. So, the little scraps that they ate were just so different. 

That’s the same thing. If you have strength and something that was so small to you, seems like such a great thing. But for you, it doesn’t seem like that much. When you are hungry. When the only goal that you had was to eat food and to store up and to gather more food for you to eat. But when you’re full you don’t have that anymore. then you receive this mission that I need to save people who are hungry like this. What happens when you don’t have a mission. 

Think about firefighters, they get paid a lot because they are staking their lives. But what happens if that person doesn’t have a mission. What happens if there’s a fire that is dangerous and they don’t go then everyone would die a mission is not optional. If you open your eyes to the mission, then you’ll realize that it is something that you have to do that. You have no choice but to pray for people with that family background, you’ll have no choice but to pray for a specific region in your prayers. That is the mission. Those eyes will open. What happens if those eyes are not opened. A person might look fine on the outside, but because they think everything is optional, it is not good in God’s eyes. 

(7)Change the world (Acts 9-10)

This means that God is doing his work. Once I received the filling of the Holy Spirit. And that is the reason why the people around you will change. Why, because of one person’s prayer. 

 It is not important that you work alive. It is that God is doing his work through you. When you enter into prayer. It doesn’t matter how many ministries you do those things may all crumble with time, but you need to do the work of God, and that is prayer, three times a day, at minimum. 

At first it’s gonna be hard. It’s gonna feel like nothing’s coming to you. But as it piles up little by little, with the power that you receive the darkness in your region will collapse and the people who experienced this continuously will know. But some people start and stop, start and stop and they live their entire lives that way. And I see that nothing is working out in their lives. 

Even if they start a job. And they’re trying to work, they’ll just start their job and then they’ll stop, start and stop. Even with school, if you don’t drop up, you will go to college. But these people are the ones who start and stop and give up in the middle. It is the same with your job. It is the same with spiritual things. If one minutes is too long, then just do it for 30 seconds for 30 seconds, pray for the filling of the Holy Spirit. 

I’m not trying to sell you something. What is the meaning of all of this? The meaning is for you to ride the flow of God’s Spirit. There is something called the flow, you have to go into the flow that you have no choice but to go into the people who eat a lot will never stop their flow of eating. Some people who are skinny, don’t like to eat. Then they can’t have any strength. 

Even if you eat just three meals a day. You need real strength. You can’t just eat one meal a day. It’s the same thing as for spiritual things. Why am I saying just for 30 seconds. I’m not joking around. I’m saying that even if you ride that spiritual flow for the short amount of time. As time passes, it will become a tremendous thing. In order for us to save Christians who are discouraged. We ourselves must become not discouraged. Are you tested by something, are you perhaps facing a problem, don’t pray to solve those problems but pray for the filling of the Holy Spirit. And once you receive the strength of the Holy Spirit you will see the problems differently, you will see the answer. And that is why even though it’s the same person. They’re going to change so much. Do you think something is a crisis, the filling of the Holy Spirit is God’s strength right.

the filling of the Holy Spirit is God’s strength right. If you receive the strength from God, then it is no longer a crisis, but you receive it as an opportunity. These are the things we need to experience first, then what happens, you will see the doors of missions open.

There’s no doubt about it. It says that in the Bible. 

(8)See the opening of doors for missions (Acts 11-28)

Number eight, see the opening of doors for missions. as Acts chapter two. As soon as they receive the filling of the Holy Spirit, the doors of missions to 15 different nations opened. If you study, your studies will become the doors to missions. If you don’t understand your studies that way. It means you have not understood biblical evangelism. And if you don’t understand evangelism, then you will not restore your life evangelism is God’s only mission. So, if you misunderstand evangelism, it means you are misunderstanding God, if you’re doing your business right now, then your job is to enjoy your mission. In other words, if you open the doors of missions, then your business will be saved as well. And that is the standard of your job.

Oh, Pastor evangelism is so burdensome for me. Well okay then what isn’t too burdensome for you. Oh, I just want to live the comfortable life of a salesman. I understand you’re going to keep going the way that you do. And at some point, you’ll face a problem. And when you see something that discourages you, you’ll be discouraged. And when you have a crisis, you’re going to run around like crazy saying it’s a problem. Why, because you haven’t opened your eyes to see evangelism which is the work that God is doing the church that hasn’t opened those eyes will then close because the working of the Holy Spirit is not there.

God doesn’t give us the working of the Holy Spirit so that we can live a good life. Once you receive the filling of the Holy Spirit you receive power and be witnesses until the ends of the earth. And that is why they held on to the Word of God, with one heart, and prayed. Then, without a doubt, God will open the doors in the region where you are working. If evangelism is not working, then the church will close down.

Even as you try to live your life, it’s not really going to be living. It’s just like the Israelites who were living under the colony of Rome. And they were only living with the comforts and education of Rome. Ultimately they were colonized and in slave it’s my idol worshippers. 

It’s like people who immigrate to America and think that they are living good lives because they have a good job and good money and they are going to a good school. It’s just like the Jewish people, what is the greatest problem, it means you’re a slave, but you don’t even know that you’re a slave. Quickly escape from that God has called you to save America to save Rome.

If you think that you don’t have any problems because you don’t have physical problems. That means you’re already enslaved. Because the churches are not able to give the spiritual answer the world continues to face spiritual disasters and problems. We have come a long way. But there isn’t even one person who has the sensor. 

We don’t need a lot of people. We just need one person who has the answer and then everyone will follow them. But most people don’t believe. Most people just think, Pastor these words are good but they don’t actually believe if you really believe then the works will take place.

Just one minute times three. That’s three minutes a day. It’s not going to be easy. Why, because that’s how it is. But without a doubt, for one minute, three times a day. Just pray, God, give me the filling of the Holy Spirit.

The meaning of that is that God will take complete control over me instead of being possessed by demons I’m being possessed by the Holy Spirit. So you don’t need your own thoughts you’re asking God to control your thoughts.

And that’s why the way that you see is going to be different. And that’s when everything turns into the doors of evangelism and missions. So, even though you don’t talk about this. God is opening these doors for you. Now I see that the doors to Curren ministry, are opening up.

There are people who have been doing Curren ministry for more than 20 years.

If we wanted to do that ourselves. You know, we’ve only prayed for current ministry for two months. And we just prayed about it because we thought it was the right time. But it’s not as if the door is opened from outside of America, there’s somebody who’s been doing carton ministry for years. And every single week they’ll send us pictures.

And when we give them the message, they send, they get they sent this mission, they send this message out to 10 different nations. So how did they enter into our church, they just entered into our Kakao Talk group chat. We didn’t even know somebody like that was here. But when God works doors like this open.

I hope that you will receive this blessing in your work as well. If the church doors are opening, but the doors are not opening in your personal life. That is such a waste.

If the church is continuously moving forward but you are staying stagnant. That is such a waste. It is so regretful. So I hope that you as an individual will go into the filling of the Holy Spirit.

So during the Friday night service we’ll talk about the filling of the Holy Spirit again prayer. God we thank you

God allow us to give the answer from the Word of God, to the Christians who are discouraged.

Allow us to relay the accurate gospel and the working of the Holy Spirit so the people who are going to church but do not have faith in Jesus Christ’s name we pray, Amen.

So the way to experience something isn’t necessarily in this order. But there are some things that you need. There are five steps to experience God john chapter one verse 12, it says that yet to all who received him to those who believed in his name, he gave them the rights to become children of God. 

The ones who believed him and received Him. Even if you don’t pray the acceptance of prayer to receive Jesus Christ. If you have the heart to believe in him. That is the same as accepting him. Romans 10 says that you confess with your mouth and have faith with your heart. Ultimately it’s good if you confess with your mouth.

 But how are people who are mutes going to confess with their mouths, they can’t. If their language is different than you don’t know if they have accepted properly. So either you have to believe in your heart, or you have to confess with your mouth. If people confess with their mouths it’s possible that they may be deceived. They can just do the act of receiving. If we just talk about the act of accepting with your mouth, then there are a lot of Japanese people who can.